Police: Bomb threat suspect wanted to go back to prison

ELYRIA — A man who was arrested on Monday for threatening multiple times to blow up stores in and around Midway Mall had been convicted of a similar crime before and told officers he wanted to go back to prison, according to police.

Matthew McClain, 30, a homeless Elyria man, was charged with three counts of inducing panic about 11:30 a.m. Monday at a local hospital, according to Elyria police Capt. Chris Costantino.

The arrest came after police responded to multiple bomb threats near Midway Mall on Saturday and Sunday.

The first threat came in about 3:30 p.m. Saturday when McClain called Best Buy in Midway Mall and told the employee who answered that she should get everyone out of the store because he was going to blow it up, according to Costantino.

A few minutes later, McClain called the store again and asked, “Do you remember me?” before repeating his threat.

The store was evacuated, and officers searched the area but found no evidence of a bomb, Costantino said.